HRH The Dutchess of Sussex She’s Got A Big Ego: The Audacity of Meghan Markle By: Aramide Tinubu
On a blistering hot day in the summer of 1996, 15-year-old Meghan Markle sat on the stiff black railings outside of Buckingham Palace with her good friend, Ninaki Priddy. Wearing an all black baby doll dress and sandals with her mane of curls pulled back into a ponytail, the teen smiled bashfully into the camera. Twenty years later, the Los Angeles native would become Her Royal Highness, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. Meghan’s journey to secure the castle was hundreds of years in the making. It was unlikely enough that a biracial woman raised by a single Black mother in LA would make it to the halls of Northwestern University. It was even more improbable that Meghan would rise to fame as a fan favorite on the beloved USA drama series, Suits. However, if you take a closer look at the Duchess’ lineage, it’s obvious that this was the one role she was born to play. A legacy of powerful Black women is just one half of Meghan’s story. She also has roots in England -- her new place of residence. The former actress’ 3x paternal great-grandparents, Thomas and Mary Ann Sykes, left Europe for the States in 1867. Once the Sykes landed on U.S. soil, Thomas began working as a coal miner. Many moons later, the Bowers and the Skyes would merge when Ragland met and married, Markle’s father, Thomas Markle, a television director of photography. It was on the set of General Hospital at her father’s side that first invigorated Meghan’s love of acting. This isn’t to say that Meghan’s journey to Queen Mary’s diamond bandeau tiara hasn’t been fraught with conflict. By the time she decided she wanted to try her hand in Hollywood, her dad was long gone -- an expat in Mexico avoiding various IRS tax liens. 15
